The Chairman and General Manager of the Housing Bank, Antoine Habib, confirmed that "loan repayment will remain solely in Lebanese lira, as long as its nominal value is in lira, and thus the Housing Bank has no connection to the US dollar."
He emphasized in a statement that "there is no need to rush, noting that borrowers whose repayment period has exceeded seven years can, according to the contract, pay the entire value of their loan in one payment, subject to specific conditions such as penalties and fees."
He pointed out that "the Housing Bank has created provisions in foreign currency for all assets in US dollars, such as Eurobonds and deposits with the Central Bank and Lebanese banks."
While Habib mentioned that "he is waiting to secure a loan worth 50 million Kuwaiti Dinars, which is equivalent to 165 million dollars from the Arab Fund based in Kuwait," he revealed that "he has requested an appointment to meet with Kuwaiti Foreign Minister Prince Salem Al-Sabah, stating, 'President Najib Mikati, in support of us on this issue, asked us and the Chairman of the Council for Development and Reconstruction, Nabil Al-Jisr, to make this visit once the date is set, in order to activate loans from all Arab funds, especially since the restructuring of the overdue interest owed by Lebanon to those funds has been completed. From now until the end of this month, the board of directors of the Arab funds will make a decision to accept the restructuring, at which time the stalled loans will be released.'"
Habib also pointed out "the Central Bank's keenness to facilitate the Housing Bank's repayment in Lebanese lira for the loan allocated to it from the Kuwaiti Fund."
He announced that 755,000 Lebanese have accessed the Housing Bank's website as of January 16, with 8,524 registered users and 6,769 applicants distributed as follows: 2,434 for apartment purchase loans, 559 for renovations, and 2,728 for solar energy loans, which are now disbursed 100 percent in cash in Lebanese lira."
He said: "All of this indicates the Lebanese people's desire to own an apartment or renovate it or purchase solar panels."
He revealed "the initiative of an international non-profit organization requesting the Housing Bank to partner with it in a project to provide loans for drilling and establishing wastewater treatment stations for homes, after noting the seriousness, organization, productivity, and presence of the Housing Bank in all Lebanese governorates, especially since it operates with a private sector mentality, being 80 percent privately owned."
Habib promised new loans in 2023 in cooperation with international organizations that have approached the bank to sign memoranda of understanding.
